Cowboy Casanova (Rough Riders #12)(160)

Boot. Our Jenny was there and she and I started talking…” He picked lint off his

sport coat before continuing. “Then I ran into Steve Talbot at the diner Sunday

morning. We had breakfast together, which included a pretty interesting conversation.”


She did not like the turd’s need to talk around the subject to build suspense before

he got to the point. She really didn’t like that he’d become so friendly with Jenny.


“Interestingly enough, both Jenny and Steve posed the same question to me. A question

about you.”


“Me? Why on earth would I be a topic of conversation?”


“That’s what I asked myself. I’ve been so busy doing my job here at the bank, that I

pay little attention to office gossip, and even less attention to the small town gossip

about the citizens of Sundance.”


Doing my job here at the bank. As if she’d been sitting in the employee break room

checking her Facebook page all day rather than working.


“So I’ll admit to being perplexed that both Jenny and Steve mentioned the same thing.

Numerous times.”


“Which was?”


“That you are involved with Ben McKay.”


Ainsley’s lungs seized up.


“Which wouldn’t be a big deal, since you are both single adults. And if you prefer to

sneak around and see him on the sly because he’s got a…questionable reputation with

the ladies, that’s your business. So that, in and of itself, didn’t bother me. But

when Jenny informed me that Ben McKay had applied for a loan, through you, not through

Leslie? And that no one in the office was aware of this loan but you? And you

immediately sent the loan application to Denver for approval and priority processing?

Well, that did bother me. Quite a bit actually. So much that I spent the entire morning

verifying those facts.


“When Steve suggested that you’ve been intimately involved with Ben McKay to get the

McKays’ banking business away from Settler’s First…I really didn’t know how to

respond, except to agree with him it’s very unprofessional on your part, but not

necessarily unethical. Then Steve said he saw you and Ben together, late at night after

Chase McKay’s event, and early the next morning, which by my estimation is about a

week prior to Ben applying for a loan. And that also brings up the question if you were

involved with Ben McKay before you helped arrange the community event for his brother,

and if that involvement swayed your recommendation for the bank to donate five thousand

dollars to Chase McKay’s foundation.”


This couldn’t be happening.


“I’ll admit I’m shocked, Ainsley. You have a solid reputation.”


“Here’s where you’ll make this supposed scandal go away and allow me to keep my

solid reputation intact if I…what? Quit and recommend you take over as bank president?

”


His eyes gleamed with pure spite. “I’d never stoop to blackmail. I truly feel this

situation needs to be brought to the attention of the management team at the corporate

office in Denver.”


Ainsley was infuriated because everything that’d been done on the up and up would now

be brought into question. All her actions would be scrutinized. With the bank’s